How a person gets to heaven, and what heaven is like, is important to any religion that holds that belief, and Mormons are not different. The LDS church's teaching on salvation is related to their convictions about human nature and the person of God (i.e. "heavenly father"). They are interconnected and therefore must be understood together.

LDS beliefs about salvation

Spirit children

Because Mormons believe that originally people lived with God as spirits before being sent to this world, salvation in Mormonism means returning to God after this life. Mormons believe salvation is attained through a combination of faith in the Atonement of Christ and good works, with emphasis on the good works:

"If you are to return to live with God eternally, you must keep His commandments, accept Jesus Christ’s Atonement, and follow His example while you are on Earth." [1]

"We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel.... [the] ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost" [2]

To summarize these and other Mormon statements, salvation can be achieved by: